Runaway Love
by xobabygurlxo
Summary: She said no. She broke his heart. Now he'd do anything to get her back. Sorta AU DOC some MS
1. Missing

OK, this is AU. Instead of Sam having an older sister, Emily, she now has a younger sister, Tiffany, who has been dating Danny. And there is no Elena because I hate her. Thanks!

Disclaimer: I obviously don't own anything except for Tiffany.

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Danny Taylor walked into the bullpen with red, puffy eyes, his tie loose, and his hair a mess. He knew he looked like a disaster, but he had had a tough morning. Anyone would've understood. He sat down at his desk and was relieved to find that no one else was there yet. He put his head in his hands, glanced at the picture that was on his desk, and turned it down so he couldn't see the smiling faces in it.

"Hi, Danny." He jumped when he heard the familiar voice behind him. "How did it go this morning?" Samantha Spade asked with a knowing tone in her voice.

He turned around to face her, and she gasped, obviously knowing what happened. "Oh, Danny, I'm so sorry. I had no idea. I really thought she would say yes," Sam said, and walked over to him.

"Yeah, well," he said, "she didn't."

"Man, that's too bad," Martin agreed, "What happened?"

By this time, everyone had gathered around him, even his boss, Jack, who had snuck in. Danny didn't need pity, just some time alone. But after looking at everyone, he realized that all of them were genuinely concerned about him. He took a deep breath, and went on to tell the story of his eventful morning.

_FLASHBACK_

_Danny woke up with a nervous feeling in the pit of his stomach. Today was the day he would ask his long-time girlfriend Tiffany Spade to marry him.__ He had been assured by just about everyone that she would say yes. Why wouldn't she? __They had been dating for __four years ever since she first moved to __New York._

_"Good morning, sleepyhead. About time you got up! __I've been up for __an hour, already.__" Danny glanced up to see Tiffany __looking at him while putting in her earrings. __"Let's go. You don't want to be late do you?" __ Danny just smiled at her__. "What are you smiling about?"_

_Danny__ shook his head, got up, said, "__Nothing, baby," __and kissed her as he walked by her into the bathroom. __He got dressed in his suit, wanting this to be __as nice as he could get it. __He wanted to do this the real way, something really romantic, maybe in Rockefeller Square at Christmas, but he just couldn'__t wait. He wanted nothing except to marry her and he swore he would prop__ose properly one day, for real._

_After Danny got dressed, he went back into the bedroom and retrieved the ring. __It was the most beautiful ring he, personally, had ever seen. __He congratulated himself on his own good taste before chuckling, tucking it into his pocket, and going off to find his future bride. _

_She was in the kitchen, __drinking a cup of coffee and flipping through some tabloid magazine. __She looked so beautiful. Her soft, __brown hair up in a high __ponytai;__, big, silver hoop earrings, and a short, black mini-dress on with black high heels. __Danny's hands started to sweat as he looked at her. __She looked up, sensing his __presence__, and said, "Hi, honey. Something wrong?"__ He just shook his head. "You sure? __You seem a little strange." Again, he shook his head. __She just nodded and got up from the breakfast nook and went over to dump out the rest of her coffee in the sink. _

_Danny decided it was now or never. He cleared his throat. "Tiffany, uh, baby, can I talk to you about something?"_

_"Yeah, honey. What is it?"__ she turned around to face him. He cleared his throat for a second time. _

_"You know how much I love you, right? I mean, you know I'd do anything __for you, right?" he asked. She just nodded and concurred with his statement. __"I wanted to do this right, but I just can'__t wait anymore." At this time, he got down on one knee__ and heard her intake a breath. He presented __the ring, and __saw tears start to form in her eyes. "Tiffany, I love you more than anything in the world. __You have always been __there for me, no matter what, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. __Tiffany, will you marry me?"_

_She couldn't help the tears forming in her eyes. She covered her mouth with her hands, stared at the ring, and felt a single tear fall down her face. "No," she muttered, "I'm so sorry, but I can'__t." Danny just stared at her. "I have to go. I'm sorry." __She grabbed her purse and went right out the door. __Danny sat down against the counter, stared at the ring, and started to cry. _

_END FLASHBACK_

"Oh, Danny," Sam said. "I will call her right now and talk with her."

Danny stopped her. "No," he whispered, "just forget about it. I'll, um, talk to her later." Even Sam's eyes started to tear up, and Martin moved closer to her. The two had been dating for about two years and had gotten real familiar with each other. Just having Martin there would comfort Sam, and he knew it.

They all gave Danny a pat on the back, and went back to their desks. He cleared his throat, rubbed his eyes, and fixed his hair and his tie. He stared at his computer screen, knowing that he had a mountain of paperwork ahead of him.

A couple hours later, his phone rang. "Taylor," he said.

"Hi, Danny? This is Annie, I work at the law firm with Tiffany."

"Oh, yes, is something wrong?"

"Well, it's just that she didn't show up for work at all today and me and some of the other secretaries were getting worried. Her boss isn't here today, some kind of family emergency, but it's just not like her to skip work without calling one of us."

Tiffany didn't show up to work? But, she had left for work. "Annie, I'm sorry, I haven't seen Tiffany since this morning. She kind of ran out of the house and I just assumed she was going to work."

"Oh, well that's strange. I don't mean to alarm you, but, well, I'm sure she's fine."

"I'll try calling her cell and some other places she might go. I'll call you back," Danny promised, and the two hung up. That was really strange indeed.

Danny called Tiffany's cell phone. Straight to voicemail. He tried again and again, left a few messages, and finally gave up. He tried calling the bar she liked to go to, and the restaurant she used to work at. He tracked down and called some of her friends, as well. Sam even tried calling her own apartment to see if maybe Tiffany was there. No one knew where she was.

"Damnit!" Danny yelled, and slammed his phone down. "Where the hell is she?" he asked himself. The other members of his team glanced over at him, all concerned.

"Danny," Sam said, walking over to him, "Danny, I'm sorry. It's been over an hour and no one has seen her. It kills me to say this, I mean, she is my baby sister and all, but I think we should treat her as a case." Danny looked at Sam, and sighed, knowing she was right.

Tiffany Spade was officially missing.


	2. I Want to Marry You

About two hours after the team officially declared Tiffany as being missing, Danny collapsed in his seat. He had been out driving around the city with Sam looking everywhere for Tiffany. At her and Danny's apartment, at restaurants she loved, bars, stores, friend's houses, Sam's apartment, even Tiffany's work. No one had seen her, and Danny was really worried. It wasn't like Tiffany to just up and leave. Someone had to have her. The thought of that was worse than the thought of her running away.

"All right," Martin said, walking over to his friend, "I've called every airport, marina, car rental place, and cab company and no one has heard of, let alone have records for, Tiffany Spade. I'm sorry, man, but it really does seem like she disappeared."

"She didn't disappear," Danny said, quietly, staring at the picture of him and Tiffany from New Years, back when they were happy. "She may be mad at me for some reason, but she would never just up and leave me. With her past history of men leaving her for no reason, there's no way she would do the same." Martin clapped his hand on Danny's back.

"We'll find her, man. I promise," Martin said.

"Yeah, I know." Martin saw Sam come in, and went to go talk to her. Danny just kept looking at the picture on his desk and couldn't help but remember back then when things were so good.

_FLASHBACK_

_"Hola, princesa," Danny whispered in Tiffany's ear, and kissed her neck. __She smiled, and turned around in his arms. She was wearing a low cut black cocktail dress with a long diamond necklace Danny had given her for Christmas, dangly __chandelier earrings, __and a glass of champagne in her hand. _

_"Danny!" she exclaimed, "__I love you," she kissed him hard. _

_"__I love you too, sweetheart," Danny responded, kissing her back. "Are you drunk?"_

_"Only a little. But it's OK, I will let you __take advantage of me tonight," she whispered in his ear. __Danny smiled at the thought, and continued to kiss her from her lips, down her neck to her shoulder. She moaned in his arms, and he just held her. He did, however, manage to get the champagne glass out of her hand, put it down on the nearby table, and drag her out to the dance floor. The annual FBI New Years party __was in full swing at 11:30__ and __the band was playing an old Rat Pack song. __As the tunes of the old song _All the Way _drifted through the hall, Danny held Tiffany cl__ose as the two danced together. _

_"I love this song," she whispered in his ear. _

_"I know, baby. __I know everything about you."_

_She pulled back and stared at him, raising an eyebrow. "Everything, huh? __Tell me about me."_

_They continued to dance as Danny thought where to begin. "You're name is Tiffany __Marie Spade. __You were born on __May 18, 1978__. Your hair used to be blonde like your sister's but you dyed it brown to be different. __Y__our favorite color is pink, and your favorite designers are Chanel, Juicy Couture, and Dior." __Tiffany nodded at every correct fact. "Your favorite TV show is _Desperate Housewives_, your favorite movie is _Breakfast at Tiffany's_, and you're favorite musical is _The Sound of Music._You love to watch old movies, and your favorite singer is Carrie Underwood. You love old time crooners like Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby, and your favorite holiday is Christmas. Need me to go on?"_

_Tiffany shook her head. "No, I get the point."_

_Danny smiled, and leaned down to kiss her. __"Have I told you that you are una __señora de la fermosura__ y __sobre las bellas bell__a?"_

_Tiffany glanced around, confused, and said, "I have no idea what that means but I like it," and kissed him on the lips._

_"Hey, you two!" The pair glanced up to see Sam and Martin standing next to them. "Are you getting my sister drunk, Daniel?" Sam asked._

_"No, Sam. Come on, you know me! I don't need to get her drunk to have a good time," Danny answered, rubbing up against his girlfriend. _

_"OK, goodbye,"__ Sam said and left with Martin bidding a goodbye as well. _

_"Hey, get together!" some random photographer yelled at Danny and Tiffany. He instantly put his arms around her, as she got into model pose (oh ye__ah, and she used to be a model. Go figure.) __and the guy took their picture. As soon as he walked away, the countdown started, signaling the 2007 new year, and Danny leant down and kissed her sweetly on the "Happy New Year," part of the night. __They left soon after._

_END FLASHBACK_

Danny sighed again and dropped his head to his desk. He felt tears coming, but tried as hard as he could to hold them back. He was going to find her, if it was the last thing he did.

Just then, his phone rang, and he jumped up to answer it. "Taylor," he answered, quickly.

"Danny Taylor," a mysterious voice said, "I have your girlfriend Tiffany here. She was walking the streets alone. Shame. Such a pretty face, I'd hate to have to permanently ruin it."

"You son of a bitch! Whoever you are, you leave her the hell alone!" Danny yelled.

"Such strong language for a law enforcement official. Now let's talk trade. You bring $50 million to the warehouse on 6th avenue, and Tiffany will go free. Not without some bruises, though. It was hard to get her here." Danny listened as this jackass smacked what he knew to be Tiffany, and heard her scream.

"Let her go, now! You will never get away with this!" Danny screamed, by this time, the rest of his team had gathered around him and Jack was trying to get someone to run a trace on the conversation.

"$50 million, Agent Taylor."

"Let me hear her voice. I want to talk to her, or you don't get a dime," Danny swore.

"Fine. Here's your whore." Danny winced and wanted to yell more, but he heard the phone switch.

"Danny?"

"Tiffany, baby, oh my God thank God you're all right. Are you OK? Where are you?"

"Danny…Danny…Danny I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I want to marry you, I do. I swear I do." Tears once again started to form in Danny's eyes. Today really did suck. "I love you so much, Danny."

"OK, that's enough!" the voice came back on. Danny heard Tiffany yell in the background, and her scream once again as this monster hit her again. "$50 million and she goes free. Good day Agent Taylor." And the call was over.

Danny sighed and slammed the phone down. She turned to see everyone looking at him, especially Sam. She was so worried about her sister, and Danny couldn't bother to tell her what he had overheard. "$50 million to sixth avenue. I need to get her back."


	3. His Fault

I was going to make this a short story, but reviews, and insomnia, have inspired me! Here's chapter 3.

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Danny sat at his desk in a sort of trance. He vaguely noted Sam, who kept trying to be strong, running around working, and Martin trying to help Danny and Sam and the case all at once, what a good guy. He saw Viv and Jack out of the corner of his eye discussing their next move and working through papers and phone interviews. Danny wanted to do something, obviously, and normally no matter who the missing person was, Danny was usually able to pull through. Even when his brother went missing he was able to do more than he was now. He just couldn't shake the feeling that this was his fault.

Well, it was. If he hadn't proposed to her this morning and totally freaked her out, she wouldn't have left so abruptly walking the street and somehow ended up in the hands of a psychopath. It _was_ all his fault.

"It's not your fault." Danny turned to see Sam standing in front of him. He looked in her eyes and saw that the usual warmth her brown eyes brought were now cold and icy. He hadn't seen this look in Sam since her "in between" period between Jack and Martin. Martin brought out the best in Sam, and she had been warm and friendly ever since he had entered her life.

"How can you say that, Sam? If it wasn't for me, your sister would be safe at work right now and not in the hands of some sick psycho, and I…I…"

Sam put her hand on his arm. "Stop. I mean it, I don't want to hear this. This is not your fault," she punctuated each word strongly, making sure he paid attention. "You love my sister more than anyone I know. She has never been happier than she has with you, and I know this. She's told me and I see it in her eyes every time she's around you. You make her happy, and complete, and that is something that she has not felt in a long time." Danny just nodded slowly, not knowing what to say. "Now we are going to get her back. And you are going to propose to her properly, and she is going to say yes, and the two of you are going to live happily ever after. Do you understand me?" Danny nodded. "Good. Now I have to go back to work. Are you going to be OK?"

Danny just nodded. "Thank you, Sam," he said in a low tone. She smiled and walked to Martin who was waiting to talk to her. He noticed how Martin rubbed her back as soon as she came over, and noticed that Martin was to Sam as he was, supposedly, to Tiffany.

As he thought about it, he couldn't help but remember the first time he met Tiffany. It had been here, in this office, right after Martin had started here.

_FLASHBACK_

_"Sam! Oh my God, Sam, thank God you're here!" _

_Danny and the rest of the team looked up to see a hot, young, skinny brun__ette wearing stiletto heels, a mini skirt, and a Juicy tee-shirt fling herself into Sam's arms. Well, this was an interesting turn of events. Even the rookie, Martin, looked turned on at this mysterious brunette. _

_"Tiffany? What are you doing here? I thought you were in LA," Sam said, as she held this young, sobbing girl._

_She finally pulled away and looked at Sam with tears running down her face. __"I was. I was about to fly to Paris to do this shoot for Gucci when __my agent called me and told me that the guy doing the shoot didn't want me because…because…"_

_"Because what?" _

_Tiffany's lower lip trembled as she muttered, "I'm too old!" and she flung herself back into Sam's arms sobbing._

_"Too old?" Sam asked. "But you're only __25," she whispered, but Danny, sitting next to the pair, heard everything._

_"I know, but you see, this photographer guy, Dustin, I sort of have a past with him and he would do anything to screw me over."_

_"What did you do?" Tiffany hesitated before whispering in Sam's ear. After a few seconds, Sam burst out with "You blackmailed him into sleeping with you!?" Tiffany looked at the team, shushed her sister, and gave her what Danny recognized as The Spade Glare. _

_"It was a one time thing and it didn't work. I just really needed this job with Dolce an__d Gabbana and he was the one doing the shoot."_

_"So, you can get another job, right? Your agent must know that you're not that old."_

_"Well, see, my agent Scott is really impressionable, and when a big name like Dustin says someone's too __old, Scott really believes him."_

_Sam had a hard time trying to understand the inner workings of the model business, and finally just said, "OK, so what does that mean?"_

_Tiffany took a deep breath, and said, "I got fired!" and then burst into tears again._

_Sam, finally realizing that the whole team was here, __just said, "OK, OK, just sit down here and I'll get you a cup of coffee and we'll figure out what to do. OK?" Tiffany just nodded, and took Sam's seat next to Danny. Sam said a quick word of apology to the team and went off to get Tiffany's coffee._

_Tiffany took out a tissue and wiped her tears away, as the rest of the team sat uncomfortably. __Tiffany looked up at them all staring at her and, thinking they were fans, said, "Yes, it's me Tiffany Spade. You may know me from Cosmo, Vogue, In Style, or more popularly Playboy."__ The team just stared __in shock, and Danny accidentally __gave a little snort of disapproval. __"Do you have a problem?" Tiffany asked Danny. _

_"No," he said, quickly, "no, not at all, your majesty." _

_Tiffany gave him the meanest glare he had ever received, and was obviously about to come back with something hurtful when thankfully Sam re-appeared and whisked her sister away._

_END FLASHBACK_

Danny smiled at the memory of the first time he met Tiffany. He thought she was this arrogant, self-centered piece of Hollywood royalty, and yet he was attracted to her on more than one level. It was a month later, after being around her a lot due to her weird need to be at the office with Sam, that he got up the nerve to ask her out. She had agreed after some persuading – and by persuading, it was a day later and after many romantic gestures – and they had hit it off immediately.

Soon, they were going out two times a week, and then three, then four, and by the time their one year anniversary came up, they were living together. They had so far been living together for three years now, and of course it hadn't come with its ups and downs. Being together so often, they knew how to press each other's buttons, and because they both had a pretty long dating history, they kept running into exes left and right. Danny remembered a time about a year ago when they broke up for two weeks because of some ex of hers that had unexpectedly came to New York.

_FLASHBACK_

_"He means _nothing _to me!" __Tiffany yelled at Danny for what seemed like the hundredth time that evening._

_It h__ad seemed so innocent. __Nate had come to New York for a quick business meeting and Tiffany had ran into him at Starbucks. __They had chatted for a few minutes, and she agreed to meet him for lunch. Of course, as luck would have it, __Danny saw them having lunch and assumed the worst. __Nate was a successful businessman from LA and of co__urse Danny assumed that he was trying to steal Tiffany away. _

_"__It was just lunch, it meant nothing," she said__, but Danny wasn't convinced. _

_"I know guys like him, Tiff, he only wants one thing."_

_"Oh, come on. Who are you? My father? Grow up, Danny," she came back at him._

_"I'm serious! Successful businessman from LA comes to New York for no reason except to win back the girl of his dreams. It happens every day, Tiffany!"_

_"__You__ really think that little of me? That after three years together I would just cheat on you with someone I haven't seen in like, seven years?__"_

_"I don't think you would, but I definitely think that guy would. __He doesn't know me, he doesn't know you. __He just thi__nks of you as some hot former Playmate __who he may still have a chance with. You're nothing but a hot, dumb model to him Tiff."_

_He didn't see the slap coming, but he sure as hell felt it. __Danny had been hit by Tiffany before in the heat of arguments, but nothing like this. _

_"You know more than anyone __how hard I've worked to shake my dumb, model image. How dare you throw that back in my face," she said in a low, dangerous tone. _

_"Tiffany, I didn't mean that _I _think of you that way. __I meant that he…"_

_"I know what you meant. __You still think of me as that dumb, selfish bitch you met three years ago. You really don't know me at all, do you?" she said, and Danny ran a hand over his face. He couldn't talk to her when she was like this. __"I hate you," she said, __"I'm leaving."_

_Danny looked startled. Sure, they've had their __arguments, but nothing at all like this. "Tiffany, you don't mean that." _

_"The hell I don't," she said as she went and gathered her purse. "I'm going to Sam's. At least she appreciates me for me. __Good night, Agent Taylor." _

_END FLASHBACK_

That had been one of the worst nights of Danny's life. It had taken him two weeks and help from other people, but he had eventually wooed her back to him. From then on, the two learned to keep open minds and talk about their problems.

"Danny," Jack said, walking over to him, "we set up a sting. We're going to go get her back. Let's go." Danny stood right up, grabbed his coat and cell phone, and followed his boss and the rest of the team out the door.


	4. Let Her Down

A/N: I took the scene from _Off the Tracks_ with Danny and Viv talking and re-wrote it to fit my story. So some of that dialogue isn't mine. Thanks.

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It was about thirty minutes later, and Danny was standing in his designated spot in the warehouse holding the very large briefcase of money, with the rest of the team hiding in their spots. Danny was nervous. He shouldn't be, he'd done about a hundred set ups like this, but he was more nervous that once he saw the man who had taken Tiffany, there would be no stopping him, and Danny would go crazy on him.

All of a sudden, Danny heard a car park, and three big guys came out and walked right up to Danny. _The three stooges_, Danny thought.

"You got the money?" Curly asked Danny.

"Maybe," Danny replied, "Where's Tiffany?"

"Not 'till we get our money," Moe answered.

"Well you're not getting any money until I see that she isn't hurt."

The three stooges turned and looked at each other, then all of a sudden all three of them pulled out guns and pointed them at Danny. Danny dropped the briefcase, and put his hands in the air, and heard the rest of his team come out and surround them.

"Put the guns down!" Jack, Martin, Viv, and Sam all shouted at these three guys. The guys turned around, saw the FBI, and quickly dropped their guns and put their hands behind their heads. The team came over to properly arrest the stooges, and Danny couldn't help but get up in their faces.

"Where is she!?" he screamed. "Tell me where she is! Who has her?"

Sam left the guys to hold Danny back, and the Larry look-a-like just smirked and said, "Now you'll never know." Jack, Martin, and Viv pulled them outside and threw them in one of the cars. Danny and Sam were the only ones left in the warehouse.

"Look," Sam started, "I know you're worried about her. God knows I am too. But willingly throwing yourself against these guys is only going to get you hurt too."

"I know, I know," Danny stammered, and ran his hand down his face in frustration.

"Come on," Sam said, picking up the briefcase, "Let's go."

As they started to walk away, Danny's cell phone rang. It was an unavailable call, but Danny still answered it.

"I see you can't be trusted after all," the same voice Danny heard earlier said. Danny stopped Sam and mouthed _the guy_ to her.

"I see you can't either," Danny replied. "I thought you were coming to get your money. Guess you're a coward too."

The voice laughed. "Agent Taylor, how stupid do you think I am? Of course you're going to bring your whole FBI posse with you, and then where does that leave me? In jail with my three goons? Hardly." Danny's heart was dropping, and he could barely breathe just thinking of what was coming next. "Congratulations, Agent Taylor. You're wonderful FBI skills have just killed your girlfriend. But, since I'm a nice guy who enjoys a laugh, I will give you twelve hours to find me before I shoot your pretty little girl here right between the eyes. Good bye." The call was over.

Danny didn't know how to process this information. He just stood there, until he finally felt Sam touch his arm, asking him if he was OK, and what had happened. He relayed the conversation to Sam, and saw her eyes fill with tears. She was strong, she could hold it, but he wasn't sure he could anymore. Together, in that warehouse, they held each other and cried.

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They got back to the office in a record ten minutes later, and filled everyone in on what had happened. Jack and Martin went off to try to get information from the stooges while Viv and Sam went to try and get something off the phone call to Danny's phone. Danny just sat at his desk, trying to once more go through reports and credit card bills trying to figure out where Tiffany was last. However, there was this nagging feeling of guilt creeping up on Danny.

He sat there, and thought about Tiffany and all the times she had been there for him. She had helped him deal with so much and had always been his number one supporter, and now he was going to let her down. He was going to let her die.

He kept going back and thinking about one time in particular. When his brother went missing about a year ago.

_FLASHBACK_

_It was right in the middle of Rafie's case when __Danny needed a break, and went home to talk to Tiffany. __She was sta__nding in the kitchen making some __coffee when he came in, and sat right down in a chair at the breakfast nook. _

_"Sam called me and told me __you were coming," she explained, and poured him a cup of coffee, "She told me everything that's been happening. I'm so sorry, Danny." Danny just nodded. "Talk to me," Tiffany said quietly. _

_"You know, I've only seen him twice since he's been released__: Christmas and Nicky's birthday. And I guess…well, I know, that I've been avoiding him," he started. Tiffany just nodded. She had been __with him at Christmas _and_ Nicky's birthday as support for Danny; she knew it would be tough. __"And all day long I've been thinking about this tavern I used to go to. It opened at six, and I used to be close with the bartender, and I…."_

_"Danny, I know all of th__is. I know about the tavern. I'm just so glad you came home instead of going there," Tiffany said calmly, and reached across the__ small table to hold his hand. He sat there and played with her hand a little before continuing. _

_"Well, you don't know everything." He only continued at the confused look she gave him. Still playing with her hand, he explained, "You know how I told you I failed the bar exam?" She nodded. "The truth is I never took it. I never made it that far. __I was supposed to drive out to Nassau Community College, and, well, I crammed all night, but before I knew it, I was way late." He continued to tell her the story about how he__ got in his car, took a drink, crashed into a cab, and spilt the drink all over. __"When the cops found the booze," he finished, "they made me take a breathalyzer. One minute I was trying to become a lawyer, and the next minute I needed one."_

_"But you got out of it," Tiffany stated. _

_Danny nodded. __"My lawyer was good. She knocked it down to a misdemeanor. The point is, I got lucky. __You know, Tiff, there's a part of me that just wants to cut Rafie off and walk away, because the closer I get to him, the more I realize that I am just one wrong step away from being where I used to be."_

_Tiffany shook her head. "No. No, that's not true. __You've changed so much Danny, and I know the last thing you want to do is __go down that path again. __You've changed your life around. Look at today, you could've gone to that tavern and got drunk but you didn't. You came home to me." Danny nodded sadly, still not looking at her, but brought her hand up and kissed it. "__I will always be here for you, Danny. __You have me. So you can get as close to your brother as you want, because I will not let you fall off the wagon again. __I won't stand to see you give up everything you've worked so hard for." __Danny smiled sadly, and finally looked up at her. _

_"Thanks, babe," he said._

_"You're welcome. Now, you got that test at the end of the month, right? You still gonna go through with it?" she asked. He looked sheepish. "Danny Taylor, you better still be taking that test. I know you didn't waste a year of your life studying for it just so you could blow it off."_

_"No, no I'm going to take it. __Who knows? Maybe I'll quit the FBI and become a lawyer, huh?" he asked with a smirk on his face. __She smiled back at him, and climbed up onto the table looking down at him. Danny's arms instantly went around her waist as she said. "Well, if you become a lawyer, you'd need a secretary, won't you?" she asked in a sultry voice, and leaned forward to nip at his ear. __He smiled, and pulled her off the table and into his arms. __"You know I would," he whispered in her ear, and kissed down her neck. She smiled and when he got to her shoulder, he hugged her and just held her for a little bit longer._

_"Thanks," he whispered again in her ear._

_END FLASHBACK_

It was times like that and many other times when she was there for him. He couldn't think of one time when he needed her and she wasn't there, actually. And God knows he tried his hardest to be there for her.

Well, except now.

Danny was still sitting there feeling guilty, when he heard someone call his name. It was Martin.

"One of the goons rolled over. We know where she is."


	5. Finding Her

Jack and his team as well as about six NYPD squad cars pulled up to this night club called Brass Five. Everything seemed normal enough, and it seemed like a strange place to hold a hostage.

"You sure this is it?" Danny asked Martin.

"This is what the guy said and, believe me, he wasn't in a position to lie to us." Martin rubbed his already red knuckles and smirked as he remembered the beating he had given one of the stooges. This didn't go unnoticed by Danny.

"Wish I had a chance to take a few good whacks at those guys," he commented.

"Yeah," Martin agreed, "You'll get your chance when we find the head honcho." Danny smiled at this.

Jack, Sam, and Viv walked up to the boys at this point. "We don't know how much this guy knows," Jack said, "So we're going to take our time on this. Go in slow so we don't set off any alarms."

"And then what?" Danny asked, "Wait for the gunshot that will end Tiff's life? I don't think so."

"Jack's right, Danny," Sam even agreed, "We don't want this guy to get scared and do something crazy." Danny still shook his head, but he looked at Sam and saw the pleading in her eyes and couldn't say no.

The MPU all entered the nightclub slowly, and looked around. The workers at the club who were there setting up for the night all looked around, curious as to what was happening. Jack ordered a few NYPD cops to stay with them to make sure they didn't tip off the boss, wherever he was.

Danny was walking by a few tables when he saw a hint of a door. Signaling the rest of the team, he went over and slowly opened it. It was a set of stairs, seemingly going to a basement. He started down the stairs, with the team following, and they overheard what was going on.

"You know what the funniest thing is?" the same voice from all the phone calls asked, "that I gave your _lover_ 12 hours to find you. Now, I have complete confidence in the FBI, I know they'll find you," then there was a sound of a gun cock, "but, unfortunately for them, by the time they find you, you'll be dead and I'll be on a plane to South America."

Danny gritted his teeth in anger, and he could hear Tiffany whimpering. "Please," she was begging, "don't do this. Haven't you done enough to me already?" Danny halted at this. His heart dropped and he wasn't looking forward to seeing his girlfriend like this. He felt a hand on his shoulder, knew it was Sam, and knew she felt the same way he did.

"You'd think that, but that was just foreplay. Now it's time for the big show."

At this, Danny, Sam, and Martin all piled into the room, guns pointed at the back of the man who took Tiffany. Jack and Viv went around the corner to get behind the guy, and the scene before them frightened them.

The man, who was about 6'4" and 220 lbs, threw his hands in the air at the sound of the FBI coming in. Martin yelled for the guy to turn around and drop the weapon, but instead, the man grabbed a broken Tiffany and held the gun to her head as he finally turned around. It was then that Danny and Sam finally recognized him as Harvey Castaldi, the owner of the club that Tiffany used to work at.

"Ah, Danny, so good to see you again," Harvey said with a sick smile, "Last time I saw you, I was kicking your ass in pool. Samantha, you're here too. How are you doing, sweetheart? Huh? Still looking as good as ever." Danny and Sam couldn't speak. Harvey used to be such a sweet, nice guy. It didn't make sense. "Well, not as good as Tiffany here. Will ya look at this face? So beautiful. Well, at least it was." It was then that Sam and Danny took in Tiffany's appearance and couldn't help but gasp. Her face was bruised and bloody, her dress was torn, her hair had blood caked in it, and she had scratches, scrapes, bruises, and what looked like cigarette burns all over her body.

Martin, noticing his girlfriend and best friend's expressions, quickly jumped in. "Harvey, put the gun down. You don't want to do this. Tiffany is a good person, what did she do to you?"

Harvey laughed and just said, "She's a liar. She lied about her past, her present, and her future. You can't trust a thing she says, Danny, remember that." Tiffany was crying at this time, caught Danny's eye, and shook her head. He nodded slightly at her, eyes misting over with tears. "When she came to work for me, she told me she had had no previous work experience and that I'd be 'helping a poor girl with nothing to her name.' The next week I pick up an old _Playboy_ and see my newest waitress on the cover. Then she told me she was single, and a month later I see her and Agent Taylor over here taking a carriage ride through Central Park." While he was blabbering on, the gun that Harvey held against Tiffany's head was getting tighter, and pure hatred was surging through Harvey's veins. "I resented her ever since. How lucky was I that I'd be driving down the street today and happen to see a crying Tiffany trying to hail a cab. It was perfect. She trusted me, I offered to give her a ride, and the next thing I know I'm dragging her unconscious body down here to my office." Danny tightened his hold on his own gun, and wanted nothing more than to blow this guy's brains out. How dare he talk about Tiffany like this.

"And now," Harvey continued, "I'm going to take away her pointless, meaningless life." Tiffany winced as the gun went further into her head, but the shot she was waiting for never came. Jack put his own gun to Harvey's head and said, "Put your hands in the air, and drop the weapon." Danny still stared at Harvey, and waited for him to react. Harvey just smiled, brought his hand back and smacked Tiffany once more in the face with his gun before Jack grabbed him and slapped him in cuffs. Danny ran forward, kicked the gun aside, and held Tiffany in his arms. She was bleeding all over, and as Danny looked over her body, he started to cry. He held her closer, running his hands over her body checking for bruises, and kissing her head over and over. His tears mingled with hers as the two lovers clung to each other.

Sam stood back and watched the scene. She was so relieved that her sister was OK, but this was Danny's time. He needed this. She had known Tiffany longer than him, obviously, and so she was certain that Tiff would make out of this OK. Martin came over and hugged Sam to him as she silently cried over the scene in front of her. He was crying as well, but kept rubbing Sam's back and whispering words of comfort to her. Jack took Harvey outside as the paramedics came in to take away Tiffany.

"Sir," one of them told Danny, "we need to take her now."

"Yeah," Danny whispered, his voice cracking, "I'm going with her." The paramedics just nodded as they put Tiffany on the gurney and took her away. Tiffany held a death grip on Danny's hand the whole time, and Danny never left her side once.

Just as they got in the ambulance, Tiffany looked at Danny like she wanted to say something. As the paramedics were cleaning her up and checking her over, Danny leaned down and Tiffany whispered, "I want that ring."

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Danny sat in the waiting room of the hospital with the doctor's words circling through his head. _Multiple cuts…contusions…bruises…scrapes…__took a rape test…loss of blood…emotional trauma…._ He couldn't stop. Harvey had done so much to Tiffany and Danny couldn't handle it. Jack and Viv had gone back to the office to question and book Harvey and Martin and Sam were getting some coffee in the break room of the hospital. Danny refused to leave the waiting room because it was the closest he could be to Tiffany.

Looking around, Danny thought of the last time that he was in a hospital. It was right after the ambush on him and Martin, and he didn't know how, but Tiffany found out about it and met him at the hospital.

_FLASHBACK_

_"You know these doctors, Sam, you can never get a straight answer out of them," Danny was informing Sam about Martin's __condition, "But they seem positive."__ They talked for a few minutes more before Danny hung up. __He __stood there thinking about Martin, when all of a sudden he heard someone call his name. _

_He looked up and Tiffany ran straight into his arms. __"__Oh my God, Danny. Sam told me what happened, are you alright?" She __looked him over and touched the bruise on his head. He winced a little at her touch, and she withdrew her hand __smiling apologetically. _

_"I, uh, I'm fine babe," he said softly. __She hugged__ him again and he held on as tightly as he could. __She __started to cry as she hung on to him. "I could've lost you," she whispered in his ear. He just held on tighter and tried to fight back his own tears. __"It's OK, I'm fine. Shh, it'__s alright," he tried to comfort her, but also tried to comfort himself. _

_Tiffany asked, "How's Martin?" as she pulled away.__ Danny just looked down and she knew it was bad. "Does Sam know?" Danny shook his head and relayed what he had told Sam to her. __Tiffany just nodded. __"Do they need you to stay?" she asked._

_Danny stood there and remembered the doctor telling him that they wanted him to stay overnight, but he needed to get back to work. He needed revenge for Martin, so he shook his head and watched his girlfriend give him a sad smile. __She kissed him and said, "Come on. I'll drive you back to work."_

_END FLASHBACK_

"Agent Taylor?" the doctor came over and asked Danny. "Tiffany's condition is stable. You can go sit with her now."

Danny smiled, thanked the doctor, and got up slowly. He went over to Tiffany's room and glanced in from the window. She looked so pale and fragile and his red eyes filled with tears again. He walked in, and saw that she was sleeping. He sat down in a chair next to her bed, and took a hold of her left hand. He rubbed it in his, kissed it, and slipped the diamond ring he had presented her this morning on her ring finger. Then, he placed his head besides her on the bed, and cried.

A/N: Probably one more chapter left. Most likely an epilogue. Thank you!


	6. The Empire State Building

Thank you all so much for your support! Love you all!

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_Two years later…_

Tiffany Taylor held her jacket closer to her body as the wind blew her hair and chilled her to the bone. She was late, as always, and was trying to go as fast as she could. She had gotten a note that morning from her husband asking her to meet him at the top of the Empire State Building at 8 p.m. As usual, it was 8:15, and Tiffany was just coming up to the building.

_Please, don't let him be mad, _she thought as she raced to the elevator. _Go faster, go faster, go faster,_ she urged the elevator. Just as the elevator reached the top, Tiffany ran out of the elevator, quickly fixing her dress and her hair. She looked around and didn't see any sign of Danny.

"Danny?" she called. _Oh, God, please don't tell me he left. _"Danny? Oh, God, please still be here."

All of a sudden, she heard faint strands of the song _A Woman in Love_ and turned around to see where it was coming from. She saw her husband standing there wearing a tux and holding a single red rose. Tiffany laughed in spite of herself, and took in Danny's appearance. He looked stunning, as always.

She smiled sheepishly. "Sorry I'm late," she said.

Danny smiled and walked towards her, handing her the rose. "No worries. I'd wait forever for you." Tiffany rolled her eyes and accepted the rose. She brought it up to her nose and smelled it, loving the smell of roses.

"What is all of this?" she asked. He just smiled and took one of her hands. "Dance with me," he whispered. She just smiled and slipped her arm around his neck and started to slowly dance with him.

Softly, Danny started to hum and then sing in her ear, "_Your eyes are the eyes of a woman in love. And oh, how they give you away…"_ Tiffany smiled and rested her head on his chest swaying along to his singing. _"…those eyes are the eyes of a woman in love, and may they gaze evermore into mine."_ Just as the song slipped into instrumental verses, Tiffany looked up at Danny. He ran his hand over her cheek, slipping it into her hair, and smirked his infamous Taylor smirk as he leaned down to kiss her.

The couple stood there, on top of the Empire State Building, swaying to old, romantic music, kissing and nuzzling each other. You would of think they just met, and not that they'd been together for almost seven years.

Finally, as the song stopped, Tiffany broke away and whispered, "I love you." Danny smiled, kissed her hand, and said, "I love you, too." Tiffany kissed Danny one more time before walking over to the edge of the building and looking out to the city. Danny came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, gazing out at the view as well.



"You know," Tiffany started, "As long as I live here, I will never get tired of looking at this city. I love it."

"Yeah," Danny agreed, "It is pretty amazing." He leaned down and kissed her bare shoulder. They stood like that for a while until Danny whispered, "Take off your ring."

Tiffany turned around and looked at him in alarm. "What?"

"You heard me. Take it off," he said, smiling.

"Why?"

Danny sighed. "Just trust me and do it." Tiffany hesitantly pulled off her rings, giving Danny the diamond one. He looked at it, brushed it on his jacket, and smiled at her. Then, he got down on one knee, held the ring out to her, and said, very seriously, "Tiffany, I love you with all my heart. Will you marry me?"

Tiffany didn't know how to react, so she just said "Yes" and let him slip the ring back on her finger. She laughed as he stood up and kissed her. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"The way I proposed wasn't good enough, I know that. And I vowed that one day I would do it correctly. So, what do you think? Did it work?"

Tiffany smiled and kissed him thoroughly. "No matter how many times you ask me," she said, "my answer will always be 'yes.'"

Even though they had been through a lot, and Tiffany still had some permanent scars and she had to see a regular therapist, things were going so well for her and Danny. As they stood atop the Empire State Building, dancing to no music and kissing softly, they knew that their future ahead was bright, and that they could overcome anything.

The End.

A/N: Thanks again!!


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